Homer High-Lights
Volume 4, Issue 9, May 2016
Message from the Principal
We have had an awesome year!
I want to thanks both parents and students for an awesome year. Our students, especially our seniors, have done great things. We have a student who earned the National Merit Scholar Award, many were nominated for service awards, we have national finalists for creating education for teens on distracted driving, we have 5 finalists in the Caring for the Kenai competition, many earned individual and team state sports championships and much more. I am always impressed and amazed at the number of awards and scholarships our students earn each year and this year is no different.
While we want to celebrate the achievements of all of our students we need to make sure we finish the year strong. We have three weeks left so please take extra effort and make sure your child is keeping up with their studies. I said this before, it only takes a couple of weeks for a student to ruin months of hard work.
Let's make these last three weeks amazing. Remember to attend our major celebrations including:
- Scholarship Awards Assembly - May 9 in the Commons at 6:30 pm
- Baccalaureate - May 15 in the Mariner Theater at 7:00 pm
- Graduation - May 18 in the Gym at 7:00 pm
If something comes up or you have suggestions for improvement, please let me know. My office is open and I appreciate hearing your opinions or thoughts. My goal is to be responsive to what our parents and community want and need. Please give me a call or come in and chat.
Sincerely,
Douglas Waclawski
Principal
Goodbye to Dear Friends!
- Cam Wyatt , our CTE teacher, is retiring from Alaska teaching and will be a principal at a career and technical institute (CTE) in Colorado.
- Francie Roberts, our Math teacher, is retiring and will be teaching classes at KBC.
- Walter Kloepfer, our Special Education Resource teacher, is retiring to finish his doctorate.
- Becky Wyatt, our bookkeeper, is moving back to Colorado to be closer to family.
We will miss you all and wish the best in the future.
Dates To Remember
May 2 - AP Chemistry Exam at KBC - 8:00 am
May 3 - Site Council meeting in Library - 3:45 pm
May 3 - Softball vs Kenai at JGP - 6:00 pm
May 4 - AP Lit Exam at KBC - 8:00 am
May 4 - Early Release - Students leave at 1:45 pm
May 5 - AP Calculus Exam at KBC - 8:00 am
May 5 - Soccer vs Redington/Houston - 4:00 & 6:00 pm
May 6 - AP US History at KBC - 8:00 am
May 6 - Soccer vs Colony - 8:00 am
May 7 - Soccer vs Palmer - 11:00 & 1:00 pm
May 9 - AP Biology Exam at KBC - 8:00 am
May 9 - Mariner Scholarship Awards in Commons - 6:30 pm
May 10 - AP US Government Exam at KBC - 8:00 am
May 10 - Baseball vs SOHI - 3:00 & 6:00 pm
May 12 - POPS Concert - 7:00 pm
May 12 - Senior Exams
May 13 - Baseball vs Wasilla - 3:30 & 6:00 pm
May 13 - Senior Exams
May 13 - Girls Soccer vs Voz - 4:00 pm
May 14 - Baseball vs Colony - 10:00 am & 1:00 pm
May 14 - Soccer vs Seward - 12:00 & 2:00 pm
May 15 - Baccalaureate in Mariner Theater - 7:00 pm
May 17 - Graduation Rehersal for Seniors in Gym - 10:00 am
May 18 - Last Day of School
May 18 - HHS Graduation in gym - 7:00 pm
May 19 - Baseball vs Kenai - 3:00 & 6:00 pm
May 19 - Softball vs SOHI - 4:00 & 6:00 pm
May 20 - Saftball vs West at JGP - 2:00 & 4:00 pm
May 21 - Softball vs South at JGP - 12:00 & 2:00 pm
US News & World Report has Listed Homer High as a Silver Award Winning School!
Homer should be proud of our students, our teachers and our school. We continue to excel on state and local assessments, but most importantly, we help your child grow up and become wonderful citizens.
Skills USA Rock the State Competition.
Counselor's Corner
Celebrating the class of 2016
Mariner Scholarship Awards Night – 6:30 pm Monday, May 9 in HHS Commons – This event recognizes seniors who have won scholarship awards as made possible by our remarkably generous community.
Graduation Rehearsal (REQUIRED!) – 10:00 am Tuesday, May 17 in HHS gym – This is a requirement for any 2016 HHS graduate walking across the stage the next day. If everyone arrives on time, we could be done by 11:00 am.
Commencement Exercises a.k.a. Graduation – 7:00 pm Wednesday, May 18 in HHS gym - If you have elderly or disabled guests that require special seating, please contact Paul Story at pstory@kpbsd.org .
Health Screening at HHS
Every year HHS nurses complete vision, hearing and growth screening on students. 10th and 12th grade students have growth screening which is height, weight and body mass index; 9th and 11th grade students have vision and hearing, in addition to growth screening. If students have had a sports physical, we do not screen for growth and vision as these screenings were already done at the student’s clinic.
If your child’s hearing or vision were not in the normal range, we have already contacted you. If you would like to know your child’s growth screening, please contact the HHS nurses, Ella May Copper-Waldron, RN, and Sharon Gorman, RN, at 235-4626 or ecooper-waldron@kpbsd.k12.ak.us or sgorman@kpbsd.k12.ak.us.
Sharon Gorman, RN
Homer High School Nurse
235-4626
HHS School Goal Update
Goal #1 - 50% of all Homer High School seniors will qualify for the Alaska Performance Scholarship.
- We are on track to meet this goal!!
Goal #2 - 85% of all freshmen will earn 6 credits at the end of their 9th grade year.
- We are on track to meet this goal!
Goal #3 - Homer will increase our Engagement scores by 10% and Well-Being scores by 5% on the annual Gallup Student Poll.
- We increased Engagement by 6%.
- Well-Being was not assessed in this last survey.
- We will not be able to meet this goal this year.

Cam Wyatt Earns Skills USA Adviser of the Year for Alaska
We Want You to Follow HHS on Facebook!
We want to be able to give you instant up-to-date information about what is going on at school. This can include emergencies, sports scores as well as dates and times of events. To stay tuned to what is going on at Homer High, "like" us on Facebook. The address is www.facebook.com/homerhs. Join close to 600 other people who have liked HHS on Facebook and the over 2000 people who view our Facebook posts.
Mariners on the Move
Each Homer High faculty member nominates one outstanding student per year based on scholarship and citizenship. Nominees and their families were invited to an April 20th celebration catered by the HHS Culinary Arts class. 4th quarter winners were (pictured left to right):
• Aurora Shadle nominated by Ms. Tetor
• Uliana Reutov nominated by Ms. Roberts
• Vincent Waddell nominated by Mrs. Lowe
• Avram Salzmann nominated by Mr. Campbell
• Martin Welty nominated by Mr. Waclawski
• Logan Reyes nominated by Mr. Neely
• Amber Bridgeman nominated by Mr. Kloepfer
• Ashleigh Lutz nominated by Mrs. Felice

Homer Places Five Finalist in the Caring for the Kenai Compitiion!
The HHS finalists this year include:
- 3rd Place - Alicia Steiner
- 4th Place - Rowan Biessel
Honorable Mention
- Sam Draves
- Elise Webber
- Owen Meyers

Visit the Homer High School Website
Are you wondering when sports teams have home games? Do you have a senior who needs paperwork for their senior service project ? Do you want to see agendas and minutes from our site council meetings? Check out our school website to find answers to these and other questions.
The address is http://homerhighschool.blogs.kpbsd.k12.ak.us/wpmu/.
You can access PowerSchool from our website and weekly activities as well. There are lots of great links and valuable information about Homer High School. If you have suggestions for things you would like to see on our website, please talk to Mr. Waclawski.